This .38 Special Revolver is all new and unfired. It has its original Kraft shipping boxes with paraphernalia. It has the original military finish, usually referred to as parkerizing, which is actually a sandblast under blue with the Colt Wood brown plastic military grips. It has the U. S. Ordnance inspected and stamped GHD over an ordnance bomb on the upper left frame. The barrel is marked "Colt Commando .38 Special."
The total production on WWII Colt Commando Revolvers is about 50.000, not to be compared to the virtually unlimited production of the Smith & Wesson Victory Model .38.
Early in WWII the U. S. Army withdrew the .45 Automatics from the Alabama National Guard. There was a shortage and I'm sure many other state's 1911's were also withdrawn. The Alabama National Guard immediately placed an order for Colt Commandos to replace the .45 Automatics. We don't know exactly how many, but perhaps 200. Before the Colt Commandos were delivered, Army Ordnance re-issued the state national guards with .45 Automatics. When the Colt Commandos were delivered, they were placed in storage and never issued. They remained in storage for 68 years, from about 1943 to March of 2011. They were then donated the the Marion Military Institute museum here in the state of Alabama.
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Again, an interesting article. I have an S&W Victory, same story, it along with many others were sent to Australia near the end of the war, never issued and put in storage for 60+ years. I picked mine up a few years ago. It’s very nice, unified.